Staying Hydrated

It feels like the dog days of summer have been with us for a long time now and with the temperatures soaring into the mid 90’s yesterday I figured a detailed entry on hydration was in order.

Drinking your water the old fashion way is much better than getting your fluids this way

During the summer every weather station constantly reminds us to stay hydrated and drink plenty of water, Gatorade, Nuun or whatever floats your bladder boat – but keep in mind – no matter what the temperature is outside – it is always important to stay hydrated. However, as the temperature rises, it takes more fluids to keep a proper hydration level.

Why do we dehydrate? So let’s start with the basics: dehydration happens for lots of reasons. Many of us are dehydrated every morning, just by the act of sleeping. The processes in your body are working hard while sleeping, and even just breathing results in water loss from your body. But the most common causes of dehydration are simply not drinking enough regularly and not drinking enough during or after activity to replace what’s been lost.

How do we know when we are properly hydrated? We have all heard the phrase “check your pee.” A light colored, almost clear urine is usually indicative of proper hydration, whereas a dark colored urine is a sign of dehydration. Note – this is a good way to keep track on a regular basis – but it is not a 100% perfect science. There can be outside factors that can cause lighter or darker urine.

When to drink fluids? Drink before you are thirsty. By the time you are thirsty you are already dehydrated and your performance will be impacted.

How does dehydration impact performance? As we lose fluids to sweating our blood volume drops. As little as a 2% drop in body weight can cause this drop. When this happens our heart works harder to move the “thicker” blood through our system. This drop in blood volume can also cause muscle cramps (I am all too aware of the painful side effect of dehydration), dizziness and fatigue. Eventually this could also cause heat exhaustion or worse yet heatstroke.

How much to drink?Calculate your sweat rate. As no two people are the same, the most accurate way to figure out your personal hydration needs is your personal sweat rate. It is pretty easy. Weigh yourself before and after exercise and track any fluid intake during this exercise. Say you ran for one hour in hot, humid weather. You weighed 165 before the run. You weigh 164 after the run (btw that is a 0.6% drop in body weight in 60 minutes). You drank 8oz during the run. You lost 16oz in weight, but also drank 8oz – so your sweat rate is 24oz an hour. So you would need to drink 24 ounces every 60 minutes in these types of weather conditions to keep a status quo.

Not a math major? If calculations are not your thing and you just want to be told how much to drink. Over the years I have read time and time again to drink 8 to 16 oz 1-2 hours before a run. If you are like me and run when youy first wake up and drinking 1-2 hours ahead is not an option, then 15 to 30 minutes before going out, drink 4-8 oz of fluid (note – I drink more than this – 12 oz about 40 minutes before a run). While you are running the general concensus is 3-6 oz every 15-20 minutes. Water is fine for runs under an hour, but start thinking about sports drinks when going over an hour.

What about post run? Basically you should drink enough so that you need to go to the bathroom within 90 minutes after the run. This could be very little or a lot depending on the length of your run and the conditions of the run. However, usually 8-24oz are in order.

How does weather/altitude/exertion level impact hydration needs? In a nutshell – your hydration needs rise along with the temperature, your altitude and your exertion. As a rule – higher altitudes increases your fluid loss, as does excessive heat. For example, an average person can lose 1 cup or more per hour when doing moderate exercise in a cool climate. However, that same person can lose up to four times more when it is hot and humid out. Note: don’t let winter trick you. Your rate of fluid loss through respiration increases in the cold – so keeping hydrated is just as important.

Can I drink too much water? Yes. Hyponatremia is the term for low concentration of sodium in the blood, and it can occur from over-hydrating with plain water during a short period of time. This can be especially an issue during longer, hotter races. You are sweating more, losing more sodium through sweat, while drinking excessive water, thus diluting essential electrolytes in the blood, causing disorientation, illness and in rare cases death. Nancy Auer, MD, VP of Medical Affairs at Swedish Medical Center in Seattle, says, “Maybe we need to make sure there is more sodium in the beverages we’re encouraging athletes to drink.” It’s time to rethink the conventional wisdom behind the water stations at athletic events and make sure we’re properly hydrating athletes to prevent hyponatremia. (Note: because I did not know too much about it – this section on Hyponatremia and a few other tid-bits are from the Nuun website).

Which one – Water, Gatorade, Nuun or 100’s of other products? Water is great for drinking daily. For your basic hydrating needs water is king. Also, for shorter runs in cooler weather water is still fine. However, as the heat or exertion rises and you begin sweating (especially if you sweat a lot) – you are losing more than just water in your sweat. That is when the electrolyte replenishment drinks come in to play.

Why do athletes need electrolytes? Electrolytes, particularly sodium, are critical for proper hydration, helping maintain electrolyte balance, and helping your body hold on to the fluid it needs. A drink like Gatorade provides the electrolytes, as well as, some carbs for energy. Whereas, a drink like Nuun provides just the electrolytes – no carbs or sugars. Note: you need to get carbs from another source if drinking Nuun (HammerGels for me).

What do I do in the real world? I try to drink plenty of water throughout the day. I am not the best at this so I tend to splurge. I find myself gulping down a large glass as part of my morning routine – every morning – not just before runs. Then I will have another large glass after a run. Then I have a water bottle at my desk that I try to drink throughout the day. then I will realize I did not drink enough and will have a large glass as part of my nighttime routine. As for during a run – in the winter I will go up to 8 miles (1 hour) and not bring anything with me, but will drink extra when I return. Whereas, these past few weeks – I have brought my fuel belt with Nuun in it for runs as little as 5 miles (40 minutes). For my long runs – In the cool weather I drink 4oz of Nuun every 2.5 miles (20 minutes) and do great. During warm humid long runs (65-75 degrees and humid) I’ll almost double this intake. In hot weather I will need even more – I try not to do long runs when it is really hot – again most of my runs are in the very early mornings before it gets really hot.

What about Carly? I have trouble getting her to drink while on the run. As much as I have tried she does not seem to want to bother drinking mid run. I have brought her own water bottle and tried squirting it in her mouth and I have looped back home so she could drink from her own dish, without much success. So I use her body language and adjust her miles accordingly. If she is ahead of me or pulling me to chase a rabbit I know she is doing fine, but if she is lagging behind me or ignoring birds, rabbits, squirrels, and other dogs I know it is time to get her home. There have been two runs (out of close to 200 runs) where we have stopped running altogether and just walked home, because I thought that is what she needed. In the cold and winter months she has done up to 12 miles with me (she did drink on this run). However, just yesterday morning (74 degrees and humid) I cut her off at 3.5 miles. Keep in mind – due to my running schedule she never runs while the sun is overhead. Black dogs really should not be running in the hot sun for any extended period of time. Black absorbs the heat more than lighter color dogs. As for her hydration needs – my wife and I just make sure Carly’s bowl is always filled with clean, fresh water. This is no small task, because she will drink a lot!…and Carly is not shy about asking for more. She has no problem picking up her water dish and dropping it at our feet.